Auxiliary fuel supply foe automo



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AUXILIARY FUEL SUPPLY FOR AUTOMOBILE ENGINES Filed Dec. 30, 1935 UNITEDSTATES Search Room PATENT OFFICE AUXILIARY FUEL SUPPLY FOR AUTOMO- BILEENGINES Charles J. Dempsey, Chicago, Ill.

Application December 30, 1935, Serial No. 56,836

4 Claims.

My invention relates to a mechanism for supplying fuel to automobileengines and is particularly directed toward improving the supply of fuelto the carburetor from the fuel pump which is used on the modernautomobiles such for example as the Ford.

In the automobile using a fuel pump in lieu of the well known vacuumtank for supplying fuel to the carburetor, it is difficult to obtain asmooth flow of fuel to the carburetor that is most conducive toefficient operation of the rrrotor.

The fuel pump together with the modern gasoline tank assembly, alsocreates certain new dangers of the motorist being left without anadequate supply of fuel without any warning to him. For example, if thefuel pump for any reason gets out of order or fails to functionproperly, the motorist is stranded even though he may have gasoline inthe tank sufiicient to take him to a repair station. Furthermore, thesupply of gasoline available in the tank is in most instances measuredby an indicating device mounted on the dashboard of the vehicle and suchan indi cating device may well be found out of order at a veryinopportune time.

The present invention contemplates the provision of a simple devicewhich gives the motorist relief from the above difficulties and dangersand provides in addition a simple means whereby the motorist may at hiswill test the mileage he is obtaining per gallon of fuel used.

Other objects and advantages of the invention will appear as thedescription proceeds in connection with the accompanying drawing whereinthe preferred form of the invention is shown. It is to be understoodhowever, that the drawing and description are illustrative only and arenot to be taken as limiting the invention except insofar as it islimited by the claims.

In the drawing Fig. l is a plan view of a device assembled with a fuelpump and a carburetor on an automobile engine; 1

Fig. 2 is a view in side elevation of the auxiliary fuel tank;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view on the line 3-3 of Fig. 2; and

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 2 of a modification.

Referring now in detail to the drawing, in more recent models ofpleasure automobiles as well as commercial vehicles, the well knownvacuum tank is being replaced in many instances by a fuel pump. In themodern vehicle, there is little provision made for access to thegasoline supply tank for supplying the motor with fuel in the event offailure of the fuel pump for the supply line.

Furthermore, the supply of fuel from a fuel pump is inherently of apulsating character which is not conducive to the best operation of thecarburetor.

In Fig. 1, the numeral 5 represents a fuel pump receiving fuel from agasoline supply tank, not shown, through a conduit 6 and a valve 1. Thispump is of course driven from the engine of the vehicle and pumps thefuel into a supply pipe 8. This supply pipe normally connects to acarburetor 9 at a fitting ID. The carburetor receives its air through anintake pipe H which is controlled by a butterfly valve I2 which isoperated by shaft l3. The details of this structure are well known andneed not be further described.

The present invention concerns itself with a simple device 14 which isinterposed between the outlet line from the pump and the fitting l0leading to the carburetor 9. As stated hereinbefore, the functioning ofthe pump 5 or its failure to function smoothly, quickly upsets thesmooth operation of the motor by failing to supply uniform flow of fuelto the carburetor 9.

The device LLconsists of an auxiliary tank which is so interposed in thefuel line from the pump U0 the carburetor Laws to operate as acushioning means to even out the supply of fuel to the carburetor sothat the pressure of the fuel supply to the carburetor and the flowthereof is more uniform and hence more effective in the operation of themotor. This device l4 comprises a tank or container which issubstantially semi-cylindrical in shape as shown in Fig. 2.

On the flat side thereof, however, the slots l5 and I6 extend inwardlyat an angle to a radius of the cylinder of which the tank forms a part.Directly beneath the junction of the walls l5 and I6, I mount a fittingin a side wall I! of the tank. This fitting is shown in cross section atl8 in Fig. 3 and is sealed tightly in the tank for example by solderingor brazing or welding. The fitting i8 is adapted to receive the free endIQ of the fuel conduit 8. This free end l9 has a ball portion 20thereon, and a leak proof connection is obtained by means of a sleeve 2|which is rounded at 22 to fit on the ball 20 and which is screw threadedinto the fitting l8.

The fitting l8 carries one end of a pipe 23 which pipe extends throughthe wall 24 of the tank I4 and is sealed thereto by soldering or othersuitable means as indicated at 25. The side wall 24 is drawn twice, onceto act as a snug sleeve for pipe 23, the other to act as a cup forsolder. The free end of the pipe 23 carries a ball portion 26 adapted tobe received in the fitting H) which is like the fitting [8. A sleeve 21screw threads into the fitting In to provide a leak tight joint as willbe readily understood. The pipe 23 within the tank It has an opening 28which in the normal operating position of the tank I4 faces downwardlyinto the tank although the opening functions equally well if directed inany other direction.

The tank l4 also carries a combination vent and drain or filler valve 29which is mounted in the center of the semi-cylindrical surface 30 of thetank I4 and comprises a valve seat 3! fixed in the tank l4, a valve head32 and vent openings 33 which are adapted when the valve is partlyopened to permit air to enter or escape from the interior of the tankl4.

Assuming that the tank I4 is in the fuel line 8 and is in its normalrunning position which is with the semicylindrical surface downward asshown in Fig. 2 if the engine is started and the pump 5 is operated inthe usual manner, fuel will be fed through the.fuel line 13 and throughthe pipe 23 to the carburetor 9. Part of the fuel however, will beby-passed through the outlet opening 28 into the tank M. The amount offuel which is by-passed into the tank I4 is not sufficient to cause anydifficulty in operating the motor even at the start when the tank I4 isempty. In fact, there is a noticeable increase in the smoothness of theoperation in the engine immediately when this device is inserted in thefuel line.

Of course, after the engine has been running for a. considerable lengthof time, the tank 14 becomes practically filled with fuel, that is,,thefuel is brought up to a level at least even with the outlet opening 28.and the further continued operation of the engine does not effect anyparticular change in the container M. The cushioning effect of thecontainer l4 however remains effective at all times.

In the event of any failure of gasoline supply in thefueltankorfailureof the pump 5 to operate, the motorist may draw on the fuelsupply in the tank l4. To do this, he simply lifts up the hood of hiscar and rotates the tank M in a clockwise direction as shown in Fig. 2to bring it into the dotted line position shown in this figure. He thenloosens the vent valve 29 slightly to permit air to enter the tank Hi.The frictional grip of the fittings l0 and 18 upon their respective ballportions 26 and 22 is sufficient to maintain the tank in the dotted lineposition. Therefore, so long as the supply of gasoline in the littleauxiliary tank l4 remains available, the motorist may operate his carand get to a repair station.

For purposes of testing the mileage of the car, the same procedure isfollowed except that in this case, the valve 1 may be turned off or thepump may be stopped before starting the gasoline test and then the tankI4 is turned into the operating or dotted line position and the valve 28is opened.

In the modified form of the invention shown in Fig. 4, the tank I4 issimply made of a dif ferent shape, that is, it is rectangular in crosssection instead of semicircular.

In the event that the user of the machine desires to obtain a supply ofgasoline for any purpose such as washing off the windshield, then it isonly necessary for him to open the valve 29 and he can obtain hisgasoline without any difficulty. However, it is impossible for onestealing gasoline to obtain any more than the contents of the tank l4until the engine is again started up.

From the above description, it is believed that the construction andadvantages of this device will be readily apparent to those skilled inthis art.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim as new and desire tosecure by Letters Patent is:

1. In a fuel supply system for automobiles and the like, the combinationwith the carburetor, and a fuel pump for supplying fuel to saidcarburetor of a fuel container interposed between fuel pump and thecarburetor, a supply conduit from the fuel pump through the container tothe carburetor, said conduit having an opening in the side thereofwithin the container whereby to supply a portion of the fuel passingthrough it to the container and to impart the fluid pressure in thecontainer to the fuel passing through said conduit to the carburetor,said container being pivoted on said conduit whereby it may be invertedwith respect to the conduit.

2. In a fuel supply system for automobiles and the like, the combinationwith the carburetor, and a fuel pump for supplying fuel to saidcarburetor of a fuel container interposed between fuel pump and thecarburetor, a supply conduit from the fuel pump through the container tothe carburetor, said conduit having an opening in the side thereofwithin the container whereby to supply a portion of the fuel passingthrough it to the container and to impart the fluid pressure in thecontainer to the fuel passing through said conduit to the carburetor,said container being substantially semi-cylindrical with said conduit asthe axis of the cylinder, and said container being adjustable about theconduit to position it above or below the conduit.

3. In a fuel supply system for automobiles and the like, the combinationwith the carburetor, and a fuel pump for supplying fuel to saidcarburetor of a fuel container interposed between fuel pump and thecarburetor, a sup-ply conduit from the fuel pump through the containerto the carburetor, said conduit having an opening in the side thereofwithin the container whereby to supply a portion of the fuel passingthrough it to the container and to impart the fluid pressure in' thecontainer to the fuel passing through said conduit to the carburetor,said container being adjustable about said conduit as a pivot toposition the container above or below the conduit and a vent valve insaid container at a remote point from the conduit for supplying air tothe container when it is above the conduit. 4

4. In a fuel supply system for automobiles and the like, having acarburetor, a fuel pump for supplying fuel to the carburetor and a fuelconduit leading from the fuel pump to the carburetor, means ,to store areserve fuel supply and to dampen the pulsations of fluid in said fuelconduit due to the pump action, said means compris ing a conduit sectioninserted in said fuel conduit, a fuel tank with which said conduitsection has permanent communication whereby the fuel may pass from theconduit section to the tank or from the tank to the conduit section atany time, said tank having a valve controlled vent opening thereinwhereby to close the tank for holding fuel therein or to vent the tankfor discharging fuel therefrom, and means to hold the tank with the ventopening at the top and the communicating opening to said conduit sectionat the bottom thereof for draining the fuel tank contents into the fuelconduit. CHARLES J. DEMPSEY.

